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02 Jun 2011 20:07

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Politics: Chris Christie’s controversial chopper convoy costs Christie cash

  • $2,151.50 the out-of-pocket cost the New Jersey governor will pay for his helicopter flight to his son’s high school baseball game … which kinda looks sort of wrong
  • $1,232.29 the amount the state Republican party will pay for the leg of the journey from the game to a donor event, where Iowans tried to get him to run for president source
  • » But he says he doesn’t use it much! Since the governor took office in 2010, he says he’s only used the chopper 33 times — a level he describes as the “most judicious” of any recent governor. He was trying to also prevent state troopers from speeding down the highway. We have a suggestion for you, Chris Christie: You have three things on your schedule you need to be at. Instead of trying to cram so much in, pick two.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

24 May 2011 16:40

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Politics: New Jersey Gov. Christie’s poll numbers looking worse

  • 40% of New Jerseyites view Gov. Chris Christie favorably source
  • » Is the grass just looking greener from here? So, something seems to be happening. Even as Governor Chris Christie’s national profile has expanded, and his frequent denial of national ambition can barely beat back the GOP clamoring for him to enter the 2012 race, his poll numbers back in the Garden State aren’t looking so hot. We’re wondering if this might have to do with the difference between how it looks from outside to see a “tough” leader calling the shots, versus how it feels to be the constituents under that thumb. Strident austerity measures, YouTube videos of Christie verbally sparring with public employees, and his generally bombastic personality may play like a GOP action movie in Oklahoma, but could it be wearing thin on those closest to it?
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

13 May 2011 15:08

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Politics: Chris Christie plays lone wolf in Mitt Romney health-care support

  • Gov. Romney’s speech yesterday was just the type of tone we need. While folks may not agree with what he said, that type of candor is what Americans expect from a serious presidential candidate today.
  • New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie • Offering a big wet kiss to Mitt Romney for his straight-talking approach to health care. Romney made the argument that the health care approach (which Obama based his national health-care plan upon) was the right one for his state — but not necessarily for the country. What’s weird is that Christie was one of the few to offer support to Mitt after the speech, which many on the right really didn’t like. Guess we know who Chris Christie is voting for in 2012. (Hint: Not himself.) source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

06 Apr 2011 17:26

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Offbeat: Little boy to be governor for a day (well kinda, it’s New Jersey)

  • Jesse’s day in the sun: This three-year-old boy, by virtue of both his evident passion for executive authority, as well as our culture of YouTube celebrity, will be getting his wish: one day as honorary Governor, as signed by real-life Governor Chris Christie. Christie’s response to Jesse, via Twitter: “Don’t worry Jesse, people gave plenty of reasons why I couldn’t be Governor, though being too small wasn’t one of them.” source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

02 Mar 2011 22:17

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Politics: New Jersey’s Chris Christie: The King of Modesty

  • I already know I could win. That’s not the issue.
  • NJ Governor Chris Christie • On what is (or isn’t) holding him back from running for President. He’s been hounded by the Republican establishment to run for prez in 2012, but has steadfastly refused to, claiming that he’s not ready for the job. For a politician to admit that they’re not ready to be President – whether or not they think they could win – is a very modest thing indeed. source
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink

27 Feb 2011 21:00

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Politics: Michelle Obama’s healthy food fight has some bipartisan support

  • It’s not all Rush Limbaugh inexplicably calling Michelle Obama fat over on the right. For some reason completely confusing to anyone with half a brain, Michelle Obama has gotten criticism from some conservatives, who somehow have equated “the First Lady encouraging good dieting and exercise” to “forcing people be healthy.” But not everyone is going crazy about what is pretty much the stupidest controversy ever – especially one in an era when there’s a government shutdown and insane unrest in the Middle East. Here are a couple of examples we can get behind:
  • supporter New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who has struggled with weight, supports her campaign. “I think it’s a really good goal to encourage kids to eat better,” he said. If a kid can avoid that in his adult years or her adult years, more power to them, and I think the first lady’s speaking out well.”
  • supporter Mike Huckabee, who famously lost a ton of weight while in office, says that while he doesn’t think the government should tell us what to eat, “I think Mrs. Obama being out there. encouraging people in a positive way to eat well and to exercise and to be healthy, I don’t have a problem with that.” source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

17 Jan 2011 20:08

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Politics: Chris Christie confirms, once again, that he’s not running for President

  • I am not arrogant enough to believe that after one year as governor of New Jersey and seven years as United States attorney that I am ready to be President of the United States, so I’m not going to run.
  • Chris Christie • Deflating the hopes of Republicans everywhere. Christie is seen by many as an extremely viable Presidential candidate: charismatic, combative, fiscally conservative, and from a blue state. Unfortunately, he seems to have absolutely no interest in running, and has categorically ruled it out in the past. Well, if anything, it’s good news for Mitt Romney! source
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

17 Jan 2011 00:34

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Politics: Max Headroom: How 24-hour news cycles numb grave tragedies

  • Look, it’s been a long week. It feels like a lot has happened since the events of last Saturday, and it might feel good to have a palate-cleanser here, but instead, here’s this Lawrence O’Donnell clip. This whole Arizona debate has been about tone – the whole thing. It’s never been about looking for blame, even if that’s what some saw in it. It was a valid argument then and it still is a week later. That’s why this clip makes us uncomfortable. We somehow got from tragedy to Sarah Palin to this story angle, where it feels like everything has come full-circle – the emotion isn’t there. It’s just the acerbic commentary that doesn’t help as much as it thinks it does. There’s a good debate here – about what Palin or other commentators on both sides should or shouldn’t have done. If anything, the circumstances lent themselves to these questions. Now it’s time to let the questions stand on their own, without the shadow of the tragedy. Let’s make them two separate things.
  • Chris Christie: Not arrogant enoughYou know, in the face of all the accolades that GOP darling Chris Christie, New Jersey’s governor, is getting for his approach to politics, what’s most refreshing is the way that he brushes them off like they’re not a big deal. Christie – again – says he’s not running for president. Why doesn’t anyone believe him?
  • A welcome Zodiac respiteAs ugly as this news week got, at least we had this story about the zodiac signs to use as a breather. Even as we had our own qualms with a certain angle of this story, we can say that it was the palate cleanser we needed. Rachel Maddow’s excited for the chance to focus on something else for a moment.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Nov 2010 20:25

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U.S.: NYC has another idea to expand New Jersey’s subway service

  • Commuters in New Joisey, you aren’t screwed yet. Weeks ago, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie announced he was killing off a massive public works project to get a subway line under the Hudson River into New York City. While fiscal conservatives feted the decision, many long-suffering commuters felt burned. New York City is considering coming to the rescue, offering to extend a subway line out of the city and into New Jersey – at a fraction of the shuttered plan’s cost:
  • $11.4
    billion     the estimated cost (with overruns) of the New Jersey subway project that Gov. Chris Christie killed
  • $5.3
    billion     the estimated cost of New York extending the No. 7 subway line under the Hudson River source
  • » Agreement still needed: While Michael Bloomberg’s administration is spearheading this, incoming NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo, along with Christie, would have to come to terms with the plan, which, while less expensive, definitely isn’t cheap. But the long-term benefits could prove worth it.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

10 Oct 2010 23:53

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Politics: Max Headroom: New Jersey governor Chris Christie likes cutting stuff

  • Repudiate this The thing about this clip that’s entertaining is not the subject matter, which involves Eric Cantor denouncing a candidate for Congress with an unfortunate interest in Naziism. It’s entertaining because Cantor used “repudiate” correctly. Take notes, Sarah.
  • Pissed-off in Philly Obama spent his sunday in Philadelphia stumping, specifically for Joe Sestak, that guy who knocked Arlen Specter out of the Senate. During his speech, Obama made a blatant rip on the GOP’s fiscal policies, clearly blaming them for the economic crisis.
  • Explaining Chris ChristieIn case you’re wondering why the New Jersey governor decided to cancel a huge public works project (which, after much complaining, he’s reconsidering), this anecdote explains it. This guy is fiscal conservatism to the core, and he’s not afraid to use his clout.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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